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Source Description
The fierce figure on the right of this tsuba is one of the paired guardians ("ni-ô") who guard the main south gate at Buddhist temples in Japan. The fierce figures protect temples from evil spirits. The dove on the left side of the composition is a symbol of the Shinto deity Hachiman, the deified form of the Emperor Ôjin (died 310). The gate guardian shown here may be from the Tsurugaoka Hachiman shrine and temple complex in Kamakura. Both guardians were transferred to another site in the late 19th century when Buddhist objects were removed from Shinto shrines. On the reverse of the tsuba is a crescent moon.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
27079
label
Tsuba with a Temple Guardian Statue
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
3
Source metadata
id
27079
sourceUrl
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Tsuba with a Temple Guardian Statue
description
The fierce figure on the right of this tsuba is one of the paired guardians ("ni-ô") who guard the main south gate at Buddhist temples in Japan. The fierce figures protect temples from evil spirits. The dove on the left side of the composition is a symbol of the Shinto deity Hachiman, the deified form of the Emperor Ôjin (died 310). The gate guardian shown here may be from the Tsurugaoka Hachiman shrine and temple complex in Kamakura. Both guardians were transferred to another site in the late 19th century when Buddhist objects were removed from Shinto shrines. On the reverse of the tsuba is a crescent moon.
provenance
Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
1st half 18th century (Edo)
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Arms & Armor
tsubas
sword components
imageCount
3
pageCount
3
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
8.9
height
8.1
depth
0.5
dimensionsRaw
3 1/2 x 3 3/16 x 3/16 in. (8.9 x 8.08 x 0.49 cm)
Source extras
cul
Japanese
style
Mito School
inscriptions
[Signature] 玄松斎; [Translation] Genshosai; [Signature] 政春; [Translation] Masaharu
med
iron, sentoku, gold, silver, copper
creator_ids
7030
collection_ids
JMA
exhibition_ids
none
Page inventory
seq
1
type
photo
mediaId
f12160708ab1d909
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
2
type
photo
mediaId
84a6897b8f3ad321
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
3
type
photo
mediaId
3a2a70b7c42c2e66
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no